Some other towns and cities worldwide enacted laws forbidding their municipal governments from spending money on bottled water. But another outright ban on bottled in Concord, Mass., was recently overturned by voters. (Credit: AP)

CHICAGO (CBS) — One way people are keeping a bit cooler on the West Side today is buying cold water from street vendors.

You might think it would be a good opportunity for a street vendor to raise his prices on bottled water, with the temperature expected to hit triple digits, but WBBM’s Bernie Tafoya reports at least one vendor hasn’t changed his prices in five years.

Howard, who sells water at the corner of Harrison Street and Kilbourn Avenue, has three coolers full of water and ice, and – for 10 hours a day – he sells the bottles for 50 cents each, the same price as when he started five summers ago.

“I’m not making a whole lot of profit. The other guys are selling it for a dollar. It’s always been a dollar for a bottle of water. This has always been 50 cents. This is the fifth summer for 50 cents.”

I’m a lifelong Chicagoan and could never see myself living anywhere else (except maybe Hawaii!).
I was born on the North Side in 1958 but have lived all but the first three months of my life on the South Side. That said, thank (or is that curse?)...